The shores of the Gulf of Mexico provide critical stopover habitat for the 296
landbird species that migrate north each spring to breeding grounds in the
US and Canada, then fly south to spend the bulk of the year in the Southern
Hemisphere. Ornithologists have long known that coastal Gulf of Mexico
habitat is critical for migrating nearctic-neotropical birds.
However, before the early 1990’s most bird conservation across the US focused only on
loss of breeding habitat, or threats on wintering grounds in the tropics. A
nearctic-neotropical migrant spends a full one-third of its lifecycle not on
breeding or wintering grounds, but in migration. A general lack of
understanding of the needs of birds during migration represented a huge gap
in conservation efforts. Pioneering work on all aspects of migration by
Doctor’s George Lowery, Sidney Gauthreaux, Frank Moore, Wylie Barrow, and
others demonstrated the many variables, and hazards, faced by migrants. The
work of these researchers also illustrated the importance of stopover
habitats used during migration.
In fact, many of these research scientists,
along with two premier conservation organizations, Houston Audubon Society,
and The Nature Conservancy were the founders of the Gulf Coast Bird
Observatory who in 1992 envisioned an organization dedicated solely to the
study and conservation of birds and their habitat in and around the Gulf of
Mexico. Thus today, thirteen years later this remains our mission.

Snow Woods

In this program land is acquired and set aside for conservation, funds are raised to
help our partners acquire important property, assistance is provided for
private landowners who wish to conserve their land, and habitat is restored
to a condition that renders it suitable for migratory birds. So that our
efforts cover all stopover habitats around the gulf, GCBO has developed a
strong network of Site Partners. This Network serves as the framework and
infrastructure for coordinated research and conservation practices for
migratory birds.

Some important land acquisitions aided by GCBO include the initial purchase of
the internationally-known sites at High Island, Texas
(along with the
Houston Audubon Society), the Joan and Scott Holt Paradise Pond Birding
Center in Port Aransas, Texas, several critical parcels of Columbia
Bottomlands forest in Brazoria County, Texas, the Fischer Wildlife Sanctuary
(with the Orleans Audubon Society) in the critical Pearl River Basin of
Louisiana. GCBO is currently acquiring property on the island of Quintana,
Texas, which is an area of known importance as a stopover fire escape for
trans-Gulf migrants. GCBO is also working with The Nature Conservancy on
the acquisition of additional premier remnant oak forest on the barrier
island of Grand Isle, Louisiana. In addition, we have worked with a number
of private landowners who wish to conserve their land for future
generations. Most recently we have partnered with the Snow family who own a
valuable extreme-southern remnant of the Columbia Bottomlands.